Julian Clark stood in St Andrews ward, where a count was ordered three times on Friday due to the votes being so close.

He eventually lost out by just two votes to Reginald Whitney, of the Residents’ Association, with 1,570 to 1,572.

Mr Clark has now decided to write to the returning officer to ask for another recount, claiming the same total had not been reached twice as of yet.

He told the Recorder: “I’m disgusted with the way it was organised. Some of the papers got muddled up when they did the count. They should do another, it’s not a democracy.”

But returning officer Cheryl Coppell, chief executive of Havering Council, said: “The vote had been counted three times and, on each occasion, the Residents’ Association won all three seats in St Andrews. It was a very close result but I was confident after the last count that the result stood.”

“Where to go for a drink near Great Portland Street?” was previously met with blank expressions and shrugs for those local to the area, not anymore, thanks to the opening of The Refinery at Regent’s Place, the eighth bar and restaurant from hugely-successful group Drake & Morgan.